Kelly Babb

Chef de Mission
Kelly brings a wealth of Games experience and a deep understanding of athlete and team operations. She started her career in sport working for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She also worked for the Host Societies of the 2017 Canada Summer Games and the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia. She joined Sport Manitoba as a Games Specialist in 2018 and was named the Assistant Chef for the 2022 and 2023 Canada Games. Her background in sport administration and event operations positions her perfectly to lead Team Manitoba.

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Kylo Harris

Assistant Chef de Mission
Kylo is a long-time Sport Manitoba sport leader whose experience in high-performance sport spans more than 16 years. He's the Performance Pathway and Athlete Services Manager and works closely with partners across the sport system to strengthen development pathways for our athletes. He has supported numerous multi-sport Games, including the Manitoba Games, North American Indigenous Games, Western Canada Games, and Canada Games giving him unmatched insight into the demands and opportunities of multi-sport environments. He served as mission staff for Team Manitoba several times, and was the Assistant Chef for the 2025 Canada Summer Games.

The Canada Games are Canada’s largest multi-sport event, requiring strong, experienced leadership to support athletes and staff in a high-performance environment. Kelly and Kylo will lead the mission team behind the scenes, managing complex logistics so our athletes and coaches can focus on performance. Team Manitoba will benefit from their proven expertise and their leadership will be instrumental in ensuring the team is well-organized, well-supported, and positioned to perform at its best in Québec City

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Amanda Sousa

Games Staff + Judo & Squash
Amanda is a Senior Games Specialist at Sport Manitoba and has a lifelong passion for sport. She is a black belt in both Judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, an assistant Judo coach and competes internationally in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Outside of sport, Amanda has two spoiled cats named Tony and Walter and loves to cycle and go to concerts. Amanda is excited to see the athletes showcase their talents and create memorable experiences at the Canada Winter Games.

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Hayley Jayde

Games Staff
Hayley works as a Games Specialist for Sport Manitoba. Growing up in rural Manitoba, Hayley tried just about every sport she could get involved in. While she may not have found her calling as an athlete, she discovered a passion for the people, planning, and teamwork that make sport possible behind the scenes. She has served as one of the Assistant Chef de Mission's for the Manitoba Games in Dauphin and Thompson and is excited to support Team Toba at her first Canada Games.

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Sarah Tone

Communications Lead
Sarah has proudly been a part of Team Manitoba since her first Canada Games in 2015.. She’s a storyteller who highlights the HERD on social media. She’s been a multi-sport athlete, who’s been a coach, umpire, volunteer, and cheerleader, and she is bringing a cowbell back to Quebec! On any given day you’ll find her at the park, a festival, a concert, or playing with her kids.

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Shannon McCarter

Communications Support
Shannon has been working in the sport industry for over 10 years, with experience at the local, provincial, national and international levels, including single and multi-sport games, junior and professional hockey, and professional football. A recent transplant to Manitoba, she is looking forward to giving back to her new home. Shannon is a well-known lover of animals and will stop any conversation to point out nearby dogs (and cats!).

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Danika Morriseau

Communications Support
Danika is the Marketing and Communications Assistant at Sport Manitoba and will be joining the mission staff team at communications support. She is a graduate of Red River College Polytechnic's Creative Communications program, specializing in Public Relations and Communication Management. Sports have always been a major part of Danika’s life, and over the years she has been involved as an athlete, coach, volunteer and official in a variety of sports. Danika grew up mostly playing soccer though she has a strong passion and love for motorsports. Danika is super excited to attend her first Canada Games and is looking forward to learning, growing, and being part of Team Toba at the 2027 Canada Winter Games. 

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Val Pelleck

Medical Liaison
Val has been part of Team Manitoba in various roles at six Canada Games as an athlete, mission staff, venue medical lead and official. She is a certified Athletic Therapist and instructor at the University of Winnipeg where she coordinates athletic therapy practicums and teaches a variety of courses including human anatomy. Val is a Softball official, holding international certification and is a mother of two children who play a variety of sports. Val will be Team Manitoba’s Medical Liaison for the Week 1 sports at the 2027 Canada Winter Games. 

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Felicia Borges

Medical Liaison + Women's Curling
Felicia has been immersed in sport throughout her life in many capacities, including as a Certified Athletic Therapist, Sport Administrative Coordinator at Sport Manitoba, Community Coach, Participant, and fan! She believes sport teaches people valuable lessons in teamwork, perseverance, work ethic and more! Felicia looks forward to supporting our Manitoba athletes as they compete at the Games and take valuable lessons and experiences home with them. Outside of sport Felicia loves theatre, travelling, books, music and time with her amazing nieces and nephews. 

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AJ Zeglen

Mental Performance Coach
AJ holds his CSCS from the NSCA and a CCC from the CCPA. He is the manager of Focus Fitness, a high-performance training facility and the owner of Invictus Performance Focused Psychotherapy, where he works with teams and individuals on mental health and performance. He has worked with the Winnipeg Jets, Manitoba Moose, and many other athletes spanning from development ages to professional levels in leagues such as the NHL, AHL, KHL, ECHL & CFL. AJ brings 20 years of experience and his unique brand of physical and mental training techniques to professional athletes, amateur athletes, fitness enthusiasts, and community members. In addition to playing basketball and rugby, AJ played five seasons for the University of Manitoba Bison’s football team. AJ supported Team Manitoba in St. John’s in 2025 and we are very excited to have him back for 2027.

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Kiera Wortley

Mental Performance Coach
Kiera is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) and a professional member of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association (CSPA) with a masters degree from the University of Ottawa. She works primarily with high performance youth and young adult athletes and teams to help them find the right tools and strategies to meet their performance goals and improve their overall mental well-being. Kiera supported Team Toba at the 2025 Canada Games and is excited to be back for 2027! 

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Kevin Kristjanson

Mental Performance Coach
Kevin is a Doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program at the University of Manitoba. Kevin is committed to helping athletes improve both athletic performance and overall psychological well-being, recognizing that athletes face all of the same stressors and challenges as everyone else in addition to the demands of their sport.

He completed his Master’s degree at the University of Manitoba studying the effects of stress on student-athletes and will soon defend his dissertation researching the impacts of self-compassion on the process of sport injury recovery. He has training in multiple therapeutic orientations, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, psychodynamic therapy, mindfulness-based approaches, motivational interviewing, emotion-focused therapy, psychological assessment, and clinical supervision. Previously, Kevin worked with the University of Manitoba Bisons, Sport Manitoba, Valour FC and Team Manitoba at the 2025 Canada Summer Games.

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Lynn Girardin

Wheelchair Basketball & Gymnastics
Lynn has over 40 years in sport as an athlete, volunteer, and high performance coach. She attended the last two Canada Winter Games, first as a parent and then as a Head Coach for Ringette. She shifted gears and embraced the role of Mission Staff in 2025 for the Canada Summer Games. Watching the athletes develop and grow as individuals is very inspiring to Lynn.

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Scott Kirk

Table Tennis & Alpine Ski
Scott is currently the Director of Health Services at the Brandon Regional Health Centre. He has been involved in sports for many years as an athlete, coach, and volunteer. Scott has extensive experience with multi-sport games in various roles – Sport Chair, Mission Staff for Canada Games, and Chef de Mission for the 2024 & 2026 Manitoba Games. Scott is looking forward to supporting the athletes and coaches to ensure a memorable experience for everyone. 

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Susan Lamboo

Fencing & Sport Climbing
With over 30 years of coaching experience, Susan is a trailblazer in Special Olympics, having served as both Chef de Mission and Assistant Chef at multiple national and international events. Last year she embraced the role of Assistant Chef de Mission for the  2025 Canada Summer Games in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Currently Susan is the Executive Director of Softball Manitoba, and with 15 years working at Special Olympics Manitoba, her leadership has shaped countless athletes’ journeys. Outside of sport, Susan is a proud mom of two—Meghan and Callum—who are dedicated athletes themselves.

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Tara Funke

Mixed Curling & Snowboard
Tara fell in love with the Canada Games as an athlete in ‘95 and has been to four Canada Games as a mission staff member. Tara is mostly retired now and spends her time at the gym, the lake, or discovering another part of the world for the first time. She is always scouting out the next “adventure” but feels just as comfortable at home in Manitoba with her two dogs Roman and Apollo. Tara also gets a lot of cheering practice following her seven grandkids in their sports activities. 

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Jérémie Chase 

Short Track & Long Track Speedskating
Jérémie is franco-manitoban from Ile des Chênes and works with athletes as a Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Coach. He finds his work fulfilling as he gets to play a part in supporting athletes pursuing their dreams.  Jérémie enjoys being active, travelling, hiking and dabbling in woodworking.

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Luc Roy

Cross Country Skiing & Men’s Curling 
Luc has been involved in local community sports for over 40 years as an athlete, coach, and volunteer. He has been a leader in the sport of ringette, from starting a new club, numerous roles as a board member and as a coach for over 20 years. Luc grew up on a farm, enjoys rural life and is still connected to agriculture working for Sollio Ag. He has attended the Canada Winter Games as a parent and looks forward to sharing his passion for sport with the athletes and coaches at the 2027 Canada Winter Games in Quebec. 

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Jessica Fichtner

Ringette & Biathlon
Jessica grew up interested in a variety of sports and ultimately focused on biathlon. She competed at Canada Winter Games in 2011 and FISU Winter Universiade in 2013. She continues to coach biathlon when time allows and got involved with Games again as mission staff for 2023 Canada Winter Games and 2024 Manitoba Games. Jessica works as an engineer at Boeing and is a reservist in the RCAF working with the cadet program. Outside sport, Jessica loves spending time with her two young girls and showing them that anything is possible. 

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Bernie Reichardt

Men’s Hockey
Bernie has been involved in sport for 37 years as an administrator and has attended multiple events as a Mission Staff and a staff person in hockey. This will be Bernie's 8th Canada Winter Games and forth time as Mission Staff. He has a passion for all sports and looks forward to supporting Team Manitoba to strive for excellence on and off the playing surface.

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Ryan Van Berkel

Archery
Ryan Van Berkel is Archery Manitoba’s Executive Director, bringing over 15 years of experience in amateur sports management. He has played a pivotal role in hosting major events like the Manitoba Games, Canada Summer Games, and World Championships. As a high-performance athlete manager and mission staff member, Ryan enhances athlete experiences while ensuring organizational excellence. His notable contributions include being Team Manager at the Rio 2016 Paralympics and serving in various capacities at the 2019 and 2023 Canada Winter Games. 

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Shawnee Scatliff

Figure Skating
Shawnee’s career in the Canada Games movement started at the very first Canada Games in 1967 in Quebec city where she competed in figure skating and won a bronze medal. She competed in figure skating again in the next winter games in 1971 in Saskatoon and won another bronze medal. After figure skating she competed in tennis and made it to the Canada Games in 1977 as an athlete. She then became a tennis coach/manager in Thunder Bay with Team Manitoba in 1981.

When working for Sport Manitoba in later years Shawnee’s career with Canada Games spanned over many years as Assistant Chef de Mission for Team Manitoba starting in Brandon in 1997 and ending in Prince George BC in 2015. In 2017 Shawnee worked for the Host Society in Winnipeg for the Mission staff quarters. Her love of the Canada Games extended to all three of her children who all competed in one of the Games as athletes. 

As mission staff for the upcoming 2027 Canada Winter Games in Quebec City the cycle will come full circle for her games career as starting in Quebec city and ending there.

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Stephanie Keith

Women’s Hockey
Stephanie has experience across both cycling and hockey, and brings a strong passion for developing sport and contributing to positive team environments. She believes sport can have a lasting impact on athletes both on and off the field of play. Stephanie is excited to be part of the Canada Games Mission Staff and to support athletes in a high-performance environment. 

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Darryl Elyk

Badminton
Darryl has a lifelong passion for sports. From a young age, sports have played a significant role in his life — as an athlete, official, parent, league manager, and tournament director. He brings more than 25 years of experience working across a variety of sports, from grassroots programs to the professional level. Darryl is the proud father of one daughter, enjoys weight training, and is an avid documentary enthusiast. He was also a member of the mission staff team at the most recent Manitoba Winter Games and is excited to support Team Toba in Quebec! 

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Kass Russo

Trampoline
Kassandra works at Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries as an Activation Coordinator, helping bring sponsorship activations to life across the province. As a lifelong athlete and sports fan, she is happiest on the court playing basketball and volleyball, on the golf course, snowboarding on the mountains, or cheering the loudest from the sidelines. Known for bringing big energy and team spirit, Kassandra is thrilled to be part of her first Canada games as a member of Team Manitoba's 2027 Winter Games mission staff. Outside of sports, you will find her working on her latest crochet project or baking sourdough, both with sports playing in the background.